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Done right, seabed mining could be environmentally friendly

The world is on the brink of exploiting marine mineral deposits but a legislative vacuum could lead to a destructive free-for-all

Nautilus Minerals

DEEP-SEA mining is one of those ideas that keeps on slipping over the horizon. Since 2012, a company called Nautilus Minerals has held a licence to mine the sea floor near Papua New Guinea. All along the firm has claimed that it would start within a year or two; its present target is 2018.

Sadly, this procrastination has not been used to resolve some urgent issues that were evident four years ago. One is the possible environmental impact. Another is that the captain’s share of mineral resources lie in international waters, which are a legal black hole (see “Are we ready for the gold rush on the sea floor?“).

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The International Seabed Authority is responsible for governing these areas but up to now has only adopted regulations about prospecting, not mining. This seems tardy, considering that last year, the US introduced a law covering mining in space, an industry that is much less developed.

The seabed authority needs to get on with it. Estimates suggest that there is as much copper and zinc in sea-floor deposits as is left in mines on land. If it replaced terrestrial extraction, underwater mining could make the world a greener place. But not if it is allowed to happen with no legal or environmental oversight, like a Victorian gold rush.